STEVENS POINT, Wis. (AP) 鈥 Bernhard Langer has been able to avoid most of the trouble at SentryWorld in the U.S. Senior Open. He still was far from unscathed Friday in a 3-under 68 that gave him the second-round lead.
鈥淏elieve it or not, I had two three-putts and a hit a sand wedge from the middle of the fairway into the water hazard, which is painful when you think about that from 100 yards,鈥 the 65-year-old German star said after his morning round.
Langer had six birdies and three bogeys a day after having a birdie and a bogey in an opening 71. On Friday, he hit 12 of 14 fairways on the Robert Trent Jones Jr.-designed course with thick rough and tricky, inconsistent greens.
At 3-under 139, Langer was one of only five players under par. The scoring average Friday was 76.54, down from 77.34 on Thursday.
鈥淭he course is tough, but it鈥檚 fair, and it鈥檚 a great setup," Langer said. "I鈥檓 fortunate to be playing well and look forward to the weekend.鈥
The 2010 U.S. Senior Open winner at Sahalee in Washington, Langer won the Chubb Classic in Florida in February to tie Hale Irwin for the PGA Tour Champions' career victory record of 45.
First-round leader Rod Pampling was a stroke back, following an opening 68 with a 72. The 53-year-old Australian had a birdie and two bogeys in the afternoon session.
鈥淭he putter didn鈥檛 cooperate as well as it did yesterday,鈥 Pampling said. 鈥淣othing to stress about.鈥
Home-state favorite Jerry Kelly (70) was 1 under with two-time U.S. Open champion Retief Goosen (71) and Dicky Pride (69).
鈥淕reens were 鈥 I couldn鈥檛 really tell,鈥 Kelly said. 鈥淪ome fast putts weren鈥檛 fast. Some slow putts were fast.鈥
Goosen played alongside Langer.
鈥淚t played just the same as yesterday,鈥 Goosen said. 鈥淰ery tricky, tough. Miss the fairway, you pray for a half-decent lie.鈥
Kelly and 2019 champion Steve Stricker 鈥 both from Madison, about 100 miles to the south 鈥 will be paired together Saturday. Stricker shot a 70 to join two-time U.S. Open champion Ernie Els (71) at even par.
Sticker won the first two senior majors of the year and took the Madison event three weeks ago for his fourth victory of the season.
鈥淚鈥檓 right in there,鈥 Stricker said. 鈥淭he scores aren鈥檛 going anywhere. It鈥檚 very challenging. It鈥檚 very tough. If you don鈥檛 hit the fairway, you鈥檙e scrambling.鈥
Sacrificing distance for accuracy, Langer frequently hit 3-wood instead of driver.
鈥淚鈥檓 not the longest guy out here, but I still feel many times the 3-wood is a better club for me off the tee,鈥 Langer said.
鈥淥bviously, there鈥檚 the rough, but there鈥檚 a lot of water in play. Then you have the greens that are quite severe at times, too. Four or five of them are really firm.鈥
Allen Doyle is the oldest winner in event history, taking the 2006 title at SentryWorld at 57 years, 11 months, 14 days.
鈥淚鈥檒l take two more 68s and let the rest of the field have a shot at it,鈥 Langer said.
DIVOTS: Defending champion Padraig Harrington was tied for 12th at 3 over after a 71. He won the Dick's Sporting Goods Open last week in New York. ... Takashi Kanemoto had the round of the day to make the cut, rebounding from an opening 82 with a 67. He birdied five of the first six holes.
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